


Not About Love

by markmins



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Bittersweet, M/M, One Shot, With A Twist, enemies to lovers kinda, i dont think i mention the other members at all... sorry bbys, i think, renjun and jaemin are mentioned like once
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-15
Updated: 2018-09-15
Packaged: 2019-07-12 01:33:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,039
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15984761
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/markmins/pseuds/markmins
Summary: The older boy pulls him into a kiss, and they stay there for minutes, maybe hours. It feels like forever and Donghyuck thinks he wouldn’t mind spending the rest of his life kissing Mark.





	Not About Love

**Author's Note:**

> this is my first fic ever so i rly hope you guys like it!!!  
> (not beta’d cus im shy)

Donghyuck is 12 when he first meets Mark, and he already hates him a minute later. It's 2 months into sixth grade when the teacher announces there’s a new student coming to class, he grew up in Canada and moved all the way to Korea so _be nice to him_. Donghyuck was excited, like every other kid in the class, to see what the new kid was like. Everyone knew how much he loved meeting new people and making friends; ever since he was a kid he was always the one approaching his peers and wooing them over with his loud voice, sarcasm, and smile. Which is why when Mark comes in Donghyuck sits up higher in his chair, paying more attention to the new kid than he had for any of the previous lessons given by his teacher.

The new boy is cute in a hasn’t grown into himself yet way. His black hair is covering too much of his face and he shakes his head to reveal his shaky eyes darting across the room. There’s pink dusting his chubby cheeks making it obvious he’s nervous.

“Go on honey, introduce yourself.”

He smiles a little, his eyes still darting across the room taking in everything but not focusing on anything. "Um hi. My name’s Mark, I hope you'll all look after me well.”

Once the teacher realized he wasn’t going to say anything else she told him to choose which seat he wanted to sit in. Donghyuck, who had already pushed his seat mate off when he heard someone new was coming to class, sat up. When Mark looked his way, he smiled his brightest smile and looked at the empty seat next to him, trying to obviously hint at something. Mark however had a different idea.

His eyes shifted and he looked to the other side of the room where a random girl was sitting, a random girl who Donghyuck noticed was not as interested as he was, and proceeded to sit next to her instead.

It was then that Donghyuck decided he did not like Mark.

 

Donghyuck is 15 when he’s forced to pair up with Mark for the end of the year project. After the whole seat thing, Donghyuck tried to put it past him, he really did, honestly, but Mark refused to look his way for the rest of year. It wasn’t as if he was actively avoiding him but whenever Donghyuck seemed to get close to him in class, or pass by him in the hallway, Mark somehow ended up turning away at the last second. Donghyuck had no chance to be friendly with the Canadian boy and when the school year ended he gave up trying. So screw science, screw his science teacher, and screw all his friends who were no help and laughed when he complained about having to deal with the older boy for the next few weeks.

“You guys don’t understand, I cant deal with him for an hour let alone _weeks_.” Donghyuck whined for the fifteenth time that day. The reaction wasn’t any different, Jaemin laughed at him and Renjun just rolled his eyes.

“You’re being dramatic, all you have to do is focus on the project. The faster you finish the faster you wont have to deal with him.”

This time it was Donghyuck who rolled his eyes. He knew that, but the point was he didn’t want to spend any time with Mark at all.

“It’s been three years, he probably thinks you have no reason to hate him. Get over it,” Renjun continued before stuffing his face with the cafeteria’s chicken nuggets. Gross.

“Easy for you to say, if it was Jaemin I bet you’d be the same way.”

“But it wasn’t and I’m not. So suck it up big boy.”

 

Mark is 16 when he realizes Donghyuck isn’t what he seemed at all. For all of middle school and his first year in high school he had to deal with Donghyuck’s dirty looks and his loud mouth in class distracting from the _very_ _important_ lesson. He didn’t know what Donghyuck’s problem was but it made him dislike him just as much. The only difference was he didn’t resort to dirty looks, but he did have quite a few things to say about him in his head.

When he saw his name next to the younger’s on the assignment board he felt a wave of dread wash over him. He could act civil, put aside their, whatever you would call it, but he wasn’t sure Donghyuck could, and the last thing he wanted was to have to stress over the project _and_ Donghyuck.

However, when he went up to Donghyuck to figure out how they would get around to working on the project, he was surprised to get an actual answer with little to no attitude, aside from the not-so-subtle eye roll.

Now here Mark was, sitting next to Donghyuck at the library for the umpteenth time that month, when it hit him. How much he actually didn't dislike Donghyuck. He was smart when he tried, he was funny, he genuinely cared about his grade, and maybe he was a little adorable. But Mark would deny it if anyone asked.

 

Donghyuck is 16 and Mark is 17 when they realize they’ve become best friends.

After handing in their project to the teacher, Donghyuck looked over at Mark and bit his lip. “I guess you aren’t that bad, we should hang out again outside of class soon,” and before Mark could answer, Donghyuck had already left the classroom.

Of course Mark took up the offer, and two days later he texts Donghyuck's number, which he got during their time working on the project, and invites him to watch a movie and go to the arcade.

Now just a year later they're inseparable. Everywhere Mark was, so was Donghyuck, and vice versa. It was as if they were each other’s other half. Everyone knew they were close. Everyone seemed to know just how close except for them themselves.

 

Donghyuck is 17 and Mark is 18 when Mark finally confesses. Mark truthfully didn't know if his feelings were mutual, the idea was to confess just to get it off his chest. He couldn’t hold it in anymore, it seemed as if everything the younger did would make his heart skip a beat. He couldn’t stop thinking about his smile, about the way his eyes lit up when he would talk about something he loved, or when he was fighting with Mark about who was the best superhero (he swore it was Iron Man but Mark refused to agree), about his nose and how he wants to kiss it. In other words, Mark was completely smitten in a completely gross way and he needed to let Donghyuck know before he exploded.

He texts it to Donghyuck, because Mark isn’t brave enough to do it to his face. He doesn’t even say hello, just sends a text saying _I like you_.

He feels his heart come out of his chest when Donghyuck sends an _I like you too_ but it quickly goes back into place when he reads  _That’s why we’re best friends_.

He swears his eyes roll all the way to the back of his head before he quickly types back, fingers smashing against his screen a little too hard. _No hyuck, I LIKE you_. He waits a few seconds until the text has been read and he waits a few more when he sees the bubble pop up signaling that his friend was typing something back. Suddenly it disappears and its been four minutes since Mark has sent the text. At this point he was at a panic, thoughts of regret, anger, and sadness danced around his mind and he almost, keyword almost, cried before he heard loud knocks on his door. His mind goes blank, because who would be knocking on his door this late at night, before quietly walking downstairs to the door and checking the peephole.

There was Donghyuck looking angrier than the time someone who wasn’t him had called Mark a couple not so nice names, which caused Mark to panic even more, because Donghyuck liked to joke a lot and it took a lot to genuinely get him upset. Donghyuck had to knock on the door once more before Mark finally unfroze and opened the door.

“You ASSHOLE,” was the first thing Mark heard before Donghyuck slapped his chest. It didn’t hurt, of course it didn’t because Donghyuck would never purposefully hurt Mark, but he still found himself rubbing the spot with his own hand.

“Who confesses over _text_. TEXT. You couldn’t bother to be brave for once and tell it to my face? Really Mark? Are you thirteen?”

Mark couldn’t find it in him to say anything. Of all the things he had expected Donghyuck to be upset over, this definitely wasn’t one of them. He texted his confession to avoid exactly this, having to see Donghyuck's face as he's rejecting him.

“Uh,”

“Uh? UH? God Mark you are such an idiot,” was the last thing Mark heard before Donghyuck was kissing him. _Donghyuck was kissing him_. Before he could let the opportunity go to waste, he grabbed the younger by the waste and kisses him back. It was everything he ever dreamt of, yes he had dreamt of it, and when Donghyuck pulled away he found himself leaning in again.

“I know I’m a great kisser but listen to me. I like you too Mark Lee. I have for a while. I’ve been waiting for you to confess but of course your dumbass had to do it over text,” he paused just to roll his eyes, “you’re lucky you’re cute.” And before Mark could say anything his lips were on his again.

 

Mark is still 18 when he finds out why Donghyuck didn’t like him.

Its during their first date, Mark took Donghyuck to a diner where they both bought milkshakes, Mark went for _boring vanilla_ as Donghyuck said, and the younger went for strawberry, _the superior flavor_. It isn’t until the milkshakes arrive when Mark finally asks,

“Hyuck, is it just me, or did you really hate me before our science project.”

All that comes out is a big laugh, Donghyuck covering his mouth when the family next to them whips their heads to their direction and gives them a dirty look.

“I totally did,” he says, bringing the straw to his mouth so he doesn’t have to add on.

“I knew it, you were such a jerk,” Mark said, clearly offended. He wanted to say he was kidding but he really wasn’t.

“Me? You were a jerk first!” Donghyuck was planning on keeping it to himself, because now that he’s 17 he can admit his reason for hating Mark might have been a little stupid, but he wasn’t going to admit it to Mark. “I saved you a seat in class, for all I knew you could’ve been some stuck up Canadian who barely spoke Korean but no, I kicked out my seat mate for you. I put on my brightest smile for you, and what did you do? You looked away! After I was being perfectly nice! And you decided to sit next to whatever her name was who obviously didn’t want to be your friend as bad as I did. 12 year old me was an angel by the way.”

“I didn’t sit next to you cause you’re cute,” Mark blurted out.

“You what,” Donghyuck said. It was the last thing he expected to come out of the boys mouth, if anything he expected to be made fun of, laughed at; he had mentally prepared himself for it.

“I thought you were cute. Really cute. I was going through a gay crisis so I was still confused about my sexuality and then you smiled at me and all I could think was _shit shit shit shit_ so I looked away and sat as far away from you as I could.”

Its then that Donghyuck realizes he really really likes Mark.

 

Donghyuck is almost 18 when he first tells Mark he loves him. It’s two months into their relationship when he realizes he’s in love. It was impossible not to, Mark wasn’t only an amazing person but he was also an amazing boyfriend, and Donghyuck couldn’t remember the last time he had ever felt this happy. A part of him thinks its too soon, he had just “hated” the boy and now he’s head over heels for him, but he doesn’t care. However it isn’t until a month after this realization that Donghyuck lets it slip.

It’s midnight and Mark’s head is on his lap, the third high school musical movie playing. Donghyuck’s eyes are glued to the screen while Mark’s are closed, head resting on the younger’s lap. Donghyuck’s running his hands through Mark’s hair, and _Can I Have This Dance_ , also known as Donghyuck’s favorite song from the whole series, is playing when Mark says something that makes Donghyuck freeze.

“The second movie is so much better.”

Donghyuck is dramatic. It’s a well known fact everyone knows, including people who have never spoken to him before. So it’s no surprise when he makes a big deal about what his boyfriend had to say.

“Mark Lee.”

“Lee Donghyuck.”

“I know you didn’t just say the second movie is better than the third.”

“But I did,” his eyes are still closed but there’s a small smile playing on his lips.

“That’s ridiculous and you know it. I could go on for hours about why this one is completely better, the second one isn’t even the second best. The first one is.”

“First of all you're wrong-“

“I’m wrong? Mark shut up. The best thing about the second one is the humuhumunukunukuapua’a scene and its not even _that_ good.”

“Humuhumu what?”

“What the fuck, you haven’t even watched the bonus scenes??? I cant believe I’m in love with someone who has such low knowledge about the best movie series ever filmed. Incredible.”

In all honesty, Donghyuck didn’t notice. The thought _I love you_ ran through his head every time he saw Mark, every time he got a text from him, every time he saw a picture of him in his camera roll. Donghyuck couldn’t look at Mark without _I love you_ running through his mind a million times, so when he just blurted it out in front of him, he hadn’t even realized he just confessed for the first time.

“You what?”

Now he did.

Mark’s head was still on the younger’s lap, but his eyes were wide open now, and Donghyuck’s fingers had frozen, now laying on his boyfriends head without moving.

“I… I said what I said.”

To anyone else Donghyuck would look like he didn’t have a care in the world, but Mark knew him better than anyone else. He saw the way he rubbed his lips together, and how stiff his hands were. He saw the way his ears were turning red, the way they always did when he was nervous. He felt the way his leg was bouncing up and down, only slightly but enough for Mark’s head to move along with it each time. Mark could see he was nervous, he could tell that he was genuine.

“You love me,” Mark said, but it wasn’t a question. He was smiling as if he had just uncovered Donghyuck’s biggest secret, as if it wasn’t a well known fact that Donghyuck loved Mark, that they loved each other.

“I love you.”

“That’s nice…”

“What the f-“

“But I love you more,” Mark finishes, and he swears Donghyuck’s entire body turns red.

“You cheesy motherfuc-“ before Donghyuck goes on a crazy rant on why he “hates” Mark Lee, the older boy pulls him into a kiss, and they stay there for minutes, maybe hours. It feels like forever and Donghyuck thinks he wouldn’t mind spending the rest of his life kissing Mark.

 

Donghyuck is 19 and Mark is 20 when they realize their relationship isn’t going how they thought. The love is there, it is, but somehow they couldn’t deal with each other. Fights every day all day over the smallest of things, no communication, there was a distance that wasn't there before. Donghyuck being busy every time Mark tried to make plans, Mark being closed off every time Donghyuck tries to have a conversation. It isn’t how they wanted their relationship to go, but it wasn’t how they wanted their relationship to end.

It was obvious they weren’t meant to be, obvious their relationship wouldn’t work out. Their friends knew it, they knew it, but they still held on. They held on to the love and convinced themselves that it was enough, that they could push past it.

It wasn’t.

Mark still loves Donghyuck more than anything, and Donghyuck still wants to spend the rest of his life with Mark. But even that isn't enough.

 

Donghyuck is 19 and Mark is 20 when they decide to end it.

They part ways, don’t look at each other on campus, avoid each other. It’s easier now that they’re in college, Mark was majoring in business and Donghyuck was majoring in theater. They were on opposite sides of campus, and they managed to hang out with their mutual friends on different days. It wasn’t easy at first. Aside from them constantly missing each other, their friends tried to get them to meet again. They were best friends before they were boyfriends, but it seemed like every trace of their friendship had disappeared once their relationship had. So they gave up.

Soon enough their contacts are deleted and there was no way to tell they even knew each other.

They graduated. They moved on.

 

It isn’t until 4 years later that they meet again. Its only in passing, Mark and Donghyuck coincidentally ending up at the same fair at the same time. This time they do look at each other, memories of their time together flashing before their eyes. They pass each other and without a word, without even a smile, they continue on with their lives as strangers.

**Author's Note:**

> i hope you liked it... it took a while to write because i wanted it to be perfect which it still isn't but i’m okay with it! i hope its not too terrible  
> feedback would be nice!!! pls be nice tho im sensitive
> 
> anyway have a nice day thank u for reading ^3^


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